Chapter 8

8

That affront we feel for another dwarfs that which we experience on our own behalf.

~ Dionadra, Essays on the Motivations of Men

The taybarri, energized by their honey sampling, had noses as good as Grandpa's hounds and followed the Kar'ruk trail without trouble while Kaylina and Vlerion rode. The axe wound didn't slow Crenoch at all, and he issued a defiant whuff when Vlerion asked if Crenoch wanted him to walk.

Kaylina was glad for the taybarri and their keen noses because she rarely saw tracks, even though she did keep her eyes toward the ground and the branches. Surprising for such large beings, the Kar'ruk had moved through the forest without disturbing much.

At a creek crossing, the taybarri whuffed several times and turned their long necks to look back at their riders.

"Do you know what that means?" Kaylina asked.

"They want a moment to drink and rest." Vlerion slid off Crenoch's back and checked his bandage. "They're also pointing out that we left before dawn, and they haven't had anything to eat for hours, aside from the small bit of honey they licked off your fingers."

"You got all that from three whuffs?" Trusting his interpretation, Kaylina also slid to the ground.

"I did."

The taybarri leaped into the creek, tails splashing the water with enthusiasm as they lapped up the cool water. Refreshed, they nipped playfully at each other, and Levitke rolled onto her back in a deeper pool.

"I guess your interpretation is correct," Kaylina said.

"I've had plenty of experience with taybarri." Vlerion kept an eye on their surroundings as he removed his pack and pulled out some of the protein pellets the rangers fed their mounts.

The musky scent had faded from the air. Kaylina hoped that meant there weren't any Kar'ruk lurking, waiting to spring a trap.

"You've mentioned that there's a treaty between the taybarri and the rangers from way back," she said. "How was that created when they mostly whuff and growl?"

"The elders understand Zaldorian, and they have a language of their own as well. The whuffs and growls have meaning, but the taybarri also speak directly into each other's minds. And our minds when they're so inclined."

Kaylina touched her temple with wonder. "How is that possible? Magic?"

"They are inherently magical beings. Scholars debate whether the druids altered their kind to grant them that or if they existed in the world before the druids ever arrived."

"Have you had one speak to you before? In your head?"

"Yes. It can be disconcerting because they also can hear your replies whether you say them aloud or not, which implies they can read minds."

Kaylina remembered the plant plucking memories from her head. That had been more than disconcerting. It had been creepy.

"It's possible the young ones can to some extent too," Vlerion added. "I've never been certain."

"Do the Kar'ruk have magic too? Those axes… There was something on them, right? Or can they make special metal?" Kaylina thought she recalled reading about magical Kar'ruk weapons before—or maybe Frayvar had shared that tidbit from one of his books.

"Your first guess is correct. From axes and tools that we've collected from fallen Kar'ruk, we know there's a powder they apply to them, presumably from an altered plant. They apply it wet, and when it dries, it sticks and is hard to scrape off. We know the powder gives the weapons greater strength and a keener edge, but it's possible there are other attributes as well. What we don't know is what plant it comes from. That's a secret the Kar'ruk hold close. We've tried to learn it for a long time."

"Maybe if I could coat my lead rounds in magical powder, they'd hurt more when they hit Kar'ruk skulls."

"Maybe if you continued your ranger training, we could give you a bow or crossbow and teach you to use it."

"My schedule has been full lately. You'd be amazed how much time running for your life occupies."

She'd meant it as a joke, but he didn't smile.

"I should have sent you back with Jankarr. And your brother should be seeking evidence to remove suspicion from you, not researching newspaper proprietors."

"You're not my keeper. And you know why I stayed."

Vlerion arched an eyebrow. "My allure?"

"Your allure is the reason I shouldn't have stayed. I was thinking of all the people in the city who want to capture or kill me."

"Hm."

"Don't worry; if I know my brother, he's researching a lot of things. He'll probably have written a journal on it all by the time we get back." Kaylina held her thumb and forefinger up to indicate the thickness of the hypothetical journal.

When the taybarri stepped out of the creek, water dripping from their blue fur, Vlerion poured a pile of protein pellets for each of them.

Crenoch eyed his, eyed Levitke's, then sniffed Vlerion's pockets, searching for something more interesting.

" I don't have any honey treats." He tapped what was presumably an empty pocket. "Sweets are bad for your teeth."

Crenoch bared his fangs and flapped his tongue at Vlerion. Kaylina decided having the taybarri read her mind might not be as creepy as the plant doing it. Thus far, the taybarri hadn't tried to kill any rangers.

"I do have this. I'd forgotten." Vlerion withdrew a small item from his pocket and came to Kaylina's side. He opened his palm to reveal an empty glass vial with a stopper.

She recognized it. For a confused moment, she thought she'd lost the vial of poison Jana had left in the dungeon and that Vlerion had somehow found it. But when she patted her pocket, she felt the tiny bulge and extracted it. Hers was full of purple liquid. Kaylina hadn't removed the stopper at any point, not wanting to risk sniffing the poison.

"Where did you get that?" Vlerion asked.

"Jana thoughtfully brought it to my dungeon and suggested I kill myself with it so you wouldn't do something foolish on my behalf that would ruin your career."

Vlerion's face froze, his jaw clenching. Kaylina hadn't shared that information with him before—perhaps with good reason.

"I should have killed her instead of snooping in her inn." The dangerous glint appeared in his blue eyes, the promise that the beast lurked near the surface.

Under other circumstances, Kaylina would have been touched that he cared enough to feel affronted on her behalf, but they were alone in the forest, with only the taybarri around if he turned into the beast.

"Do you want me to hum to you?" She rested a hand on his shoulder, hoping to help calm him, but maybe touching wasn't a good idea since that tended to rouse other emotions in him. "I'll have to get you to teach me your song. I doubt I could replicate it based on the snatches of humming I've heard."

Vlerion closed his eyes and took several long slow breaths. "I don't know if that would work, but I'll play it for you one day on my violin. There are lyrics too, though I don't have the voice that my brother had."

"Is yours more pompous and gruff?" Kaylina didn't know if teasing him was a good way to calm his riled emotions, but it had to be less incendiary than him mulling over murdering Jana.

Vlerion opened his eyes but only so he could squint at her. "As a mead maker and gatherer of honey, you of all people ought to know better than to poke a wasp's nest."

"I avoid wasp nests, generally. Some species can make honey but not very much. They don't store it as food for the winter. They mostly nosh on other insects to stave off hunger." Kaylina pointed at the empty vial in his hand. "You searched Nakeron Inn?"

"The office, yes. I thought I might find evidence that could help you clear your name. I didn't know you already had a vial of her poison." The coolness returned to his gaze as he regarded it. At least the dangerous glint had faded. "There's a maker's mark on the bottom of this." He rotated the empty vial to show her. "Does that one have the same?"

Kaylina turned hers toward the dappled sunlight creeping through the leaves overhead. "Yes."

"When we finish here, you or your brother can seek out the glassmaker. He or she might be able to point you to whomever buys the vials. Poison makers don't hang out signs, so they're hard to find. They're usually alchemists and apothecaries, doing that at night while practicing their more respectable trades during the day."

"Thank you." Kaylina took the empty vial and tucked it in another pocket.

"It crossed my mind to grab Jana Bloomlong by the neck while I was there and threaten her life if she didn't go to the queen and tell the truth, but the ranger handbook forbids dishonorable conduct like coercion, blackmail, and extortion."

"And wringing old ladies' necks?"

"That's not mentioned specifically, but it falls under the other categories."

"Good. Books should imply a need for respectable behavior."

"Yes." Vlerion sighed. "I suggested she be brought to ranger headquarters and questioned under kafdari root, but Targon balked at the idea. The queen absolutely would have. Even though Bloomlong isn't a noble, she's run her inn and served her mead to the royal family for years, if not decades. As Targon pointed out, it's not acceptable to force respected citizens to chew kafdari root."

"But it's okay to stuff wads of it into the mouths of visitors from another part of the kingdom?"

"You did consent to that."

"As if I had a choice when I was going to otherwise be a prisoner in jail indefinitely."

Vlerion tilted his palm toward the canopy and didn't deny that.

"Either way, I can't break any laws or even customs right now. I'm suspect in the queen's eyes, and that could get even worse. So far, that newspaper has been vague about the origins of the beast supposedly working with the rangers, but I can't assume the Virts don't know my secret. I need to tread lightly."

"I understand, and I'm sorry that you're… suspect, as you said, because of me. I didn't mean to get in trouble like this and certainly not to drag you into it with me."

"You don't deserve to be in trouble for wanting to open a meadery." Vlerion managed a faint smile. "Perhaps for calling aristocrats pirates, but that's another matter."

"I only call you that."

"Such an honor you bestow on me."

"Yes." She kissed him on the cheek, ignoring his sarcasm. "I'm glad you realize that."

Vlerion drew her into a hug. "You've an amazing knack for irritating a man while simultaneously driving him to reckless actions out of a desire to protect you."

"I'd say I've practiced a lot, but there haven't been that many men. Until I met you, only those who were related to me and obligated by blood would have gotten reckless on my behalf."

"Not the man you spoke of who asked why you weren't normal?" Vlerion leaned back, looking at her as he raised his eyebrows.

"I don't think so. For a while, I thought I was happier with him, that I needed to be in a relationship like all my other female friends, but, in hindsight, I think he just wanted to have sex with me." Kaylina wrinkled her nose.

"I suspect many men have wanted that."

"That's not as appealing as guys seem to think."

"No? What is appealing?"

"Having men respect you and not order you around."

"It is easier to have sex with women."

"I'm sure."

But it wasn't for him. Not with the possible repercussions.

Maybe that thought came to his mind, because Vlerion sighed, released her, and stepped back.

Crenoch whuffed. The taybarri had finished their piles of pellets, and both their snouts pointed toward the trail.

"We're ready to continue on." Vlerion waved for Kaylina to follow Crenoch and Levitke, and he walked behind her, keeping her protectively between the strong taybarri and his sword arm.

She didn't mind him wanting to keep her safe, but she did worry that seeing her in danger would bring out the beast. She supposed it wouldn't be the worst thing if he was surrounded by Kar'ruk when it happened and could use all that deadly strength against enemies of the kingdom. But if he attacked her or the innocent taybarri… that would be horrific—if not fatal. She knew he wouldn't forgive himself for either crime.